An initiative to better understand cancer (UNCAN.eu) is part of the implementation roadmap of two EU programmes, the ‘Beating Cancer Plan’ and the Horizon Europe Mission on Cancer.
The first project funded under the UNCAN.eu initiative is the €3 million Co-Ordination and Support Action titled 4.UNCAN.eu, which will prepare a blueprint for the broader initiative within the next 15 months.
Across the 27 EU Member States, 2.7 million people are diagnosed with cancer every year and 1.3 million die from the disease. More than 6,000 disease victims are children, adolescents and young adults, and over half a million EU citizens are childhood cancer survivors dealing with long-term effects of the disease and its treatment. Cancer puts an immense pressure on health systems, the impact of which is deepening with increasing life expectancies.
Through this initiative, the EU addresses the need for a new level of investment to better understand cancer in order to promote new thinking and new breakthroughs in disease prevention, diagnosis and treatment – and for strengthened collaboration among Member States to consolidate data sciences capacity, to advance modern oncology and more efficiently hinder the rise of disease burden.
Partner in 4.UNCAN.eu, Co-Lead of the All-Island Cancer Research Institute and Deputy Director of Precision Oncology Ireland, Professor William Gallagher said: “I am delighted that Ireland is participating in the 4.UNCAN.eu project, as it sets out to create a cross-Europe framework for key challenges that need to be addressed relating to our better understanding of cancer. Through both the All-Island Cancer Research Institute and Precision Oncology Ireland, which UCD investigators are spear-heading, we will leverage our respective expertise in the area of precision cancer medicine as well as experience in bringing diverse stakeholders together in this crucial EU Cancer Mission project.”
Goals: Building a Federated Data Hub and providing a Research Agenda
The initiative is expected to collect research and patient health data, as well other relevant data, at an unprecedented scale to gain new and deeper understanding of cancer mechanisms. The global ambition is to further knowledge and guide improvements in cancer care, including treatment-related side effects, to save lives and improve the quality of life of cancer survivors and their caretakers. The data collected within UNCAN.eu will be used by stakeholders in Europe and beyond.
To develop the blueprint, 4.UNCAN.eu will integrate inequalities in cancer research across regions and Member States to boost the research potential of less-developed regions in Europe. A dedicated work package, led by the European Cancer Patient Coalition (ECPC), will ensure that patients' and citizens’ expectations and priorities are heard and taken into account when identifying all challenges.
The Research Agenda will include a series of use cases addressing urgent and essential scientific and medical needs in cancer care and survivorship in males and females of various ages. This agenda will then be used to help determine the most competitive, ambitious and innovative cross-border and transdisciplinary research programmes to invest in.
Partners will be committed to open science principles, including FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable) guiding principles for scientific data collection, management and stewardship.
The new understanding gained from the collection and analysis of this wealth of data can be applied secondarily to other diseases.
About 4.UNCAN.eu Partnership
The project is coordinated by Professor Eric Solary, Inserm, and funded under the EU research and innovation programme Horizon Europe. The consortium spans 29 institutions and organizations across 19 countries in Europe.
For more information visit https://uncaninitiative.eu/